We tested it out during peak lunch time — when Chick-fil-A
is typically slammed with customers — to see if it really lives
up to its promise.

The app, Chick-fil-A One, allows customers to order and pay
for their food in advance and then pick it upat a
counter designated for online orders.

This isn't a new concept. Starbucks was one of the first
major chains to successfully offer this service.

We wanted to know whether it could work just as seamlessly
at a full-service restaurant as busy as Chick-fil-A.

After downloading the app at home, I selected a Chick-fil-A
restaurant in Richmond, Virginia, and ordered a spicy chicken
sandwich, a side of waffle fries, and a vanilla iced
coffee.

The ordering process went smoothly. I found it easy to
navigate the menu, add sides and sauces, and customize my
order.

When I arrived at the restaurant 20 minutes later, it was
about 12:15 p.m. and as busy as I had expected.

Business Insider/Hayley
Peterson

The parking lot was completely full — I had to park at a
nearby store — and there were at least 20 cars in the drive-thru
lane.Inside, most of the dining tables were
occupied and there was a line of 11 people at the
register.

To the right of the front counter, I saw a "pickup" sign
hanging from the ceiling over a table that displayed signs for
Chick-fil-A One. I figured that this was where I should wait for
my food.

Business Insider/Hayley
Peterson

I opened the Chick-fil-A app to see if it recognized that I
had arrived at the restaurant. Unfortunately, it didn't, so I
clicked "I'm here" to manually let the app know that I had
arrived. I got a message saying that my order was in progress and
that my credit card had been charged.

I started a timer and, 65 seconds later, an employee called
my name and handed me my food by the "pickup" table.

I sat down at a dining table to eat. The food was piping
hot and the order was accurately filled.

As I ate, I noticed three more customers come into the
restaurant for online orders. None of them had to wait longer
than a minute for their food.

Meanwhile, the line for the registers stayed steady with
about 10 customers queuing at a time.

Business Insider/Hayley
Peterson

This was only one experience with the app, but at least this time
it appeared to follow through on its promise of
enabling me to avoid standing in line.

I was a little disappointed that the geo-targeting
function of the app didn't work, so I had to manually let the
restaurant know that I had arrived. I assume that this will be
fixed in futureupdates.

As Chick-fil-A One grows in popularity, there's a risk that
the queues for food will simply shift from the registers to the
online pickup area. If that happens, then Chick-fil-A will have
to hire more employees during peak meal times to pack
orders.

Fortunately for Chick-fil-A, however, packing online orders
is likely more efficient than taking orders at the
register.Employees canfill
moreorders fasterwhen they aren't
spending timecommunicatingverballywithcustomers and
exchanging money at the register. So the shift to online
ordering could help Chick-fil-A increase productivity.